Best Bites: Chorizo sage mac and cheese baked in a squash
Welcome to Best Bites, a twice-weekly video series that aims to satisfy your never-ending craving for food content through quick, beautiful videos for the at-home foodie.
This dish takes comfort food to a whole other level! Learn how to make chorizo mac and cheese baked in a squash in this episode of Best Bites!
Ingredients:
1 2-3 lb pumpkin (we used a Japanese winter squash called Kabocha)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil
8 oz Mexican chorizo, removed from casing
2 cups whole milk
4 fresh sage leaves
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon minced shallot
2 tablespoons flour
8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
½ lb pasta
Topping:
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp olive oil
2 tbsp parsley
¾ cup bread crumbs
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Cut the top off the pumpkin at a 45 degree angle, as you would to make a jack 0 lantern. Scoop out the seeds and stringy bits. You want the inside pretty clean. Drizzle olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Put the top back on pumpkin and bake, 45 minutes.
In a medium sized sauté pan over medium heat add the olive oil and chorizo. Cook 10 minutes.
In a small saucepan over medium-low heat warm the milk with the sage steeping in it.
In a medium sized saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter and add the shallot. Whisk in the flour, stirring constantly for 2 minutes. Slowly pour in the warmed milk and whisk until well combined. Turn up the heat and thicken the sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, cook the past al dente and drain.
Slowly stir in the cheese, a small handful at a time. Then stir chorizo into the béchamel sauce. Mix the cooked pasta into the sauce. Ladle into the pumpkin and put the top back on. Bake 20-25 minutes. Let it sit 10 minutes before serving. Scrape pumpkin into every bowl. Sprinkle topping.
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